“Blessed is the man [whose]…delight is in the law of the Lord” Psalm 1
Part One: The Roots of Law
In the beginning…there was law
In the oldest traditions known from ancient Mesopotamia and thereby the whole world, we learn that the Sumerian people were concerned about the abuse by the mighty of the poor in their society. Just as Justice is considered the foundation stones and highest virtues of our modern age, so too was it central to ancient Mesopotamians. It is without a doubt that the major law-code that preceded the birth of the Israelites and doubtless held an influence over them- was the great and detailed law code of King Hammurabi, the sixth King from the first dynasty of Babylon (18th-17th century BCE). This law code that reveals a king keenly interested in the execution of justice amongst his people set the standard by which all following law codes are heavily indebted.
Justice 4000 Years Ago Hammurabi’s Code which is a compilation of what is believed to be originally two hundred and eighty five laws ranges from legal dealings from Animal Rentals to issues of Alimony. The law is written in case form (a pattern continued by Israelite Law) where a situation is described and a verdict given- the example of such a situation provides for additional clarity.
In a financial crisis- If any one owe a debt for a loan, and a storm prostrates the grain, or the harvest fail, or the grain does not grow for lack of water; in that year he need not give his creditor any grain, he washes his debt-tablet in water and pays no rent for this year. Law 48
The section on family law regulates family conflicts and defines the status of women in all their various roles. It also pays attention to the legal precedents of personal injury and Law 196 is well-known among all of us today who have heard of “An eye for an eye” law. But what does it actually mean?
Law 196- If a man put out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out
This law may sound vicious and extreme however its importance in Babylonian society cannot be underestimate. This law which also is found in Exodus 21:23-27, is a way to appease the offended party and to stop a family or clan feud from developing. The one responsible for the injury must repay in likeness thus restricting feuding and also to an extent protect the aggressor from an even severer punishment. Considering this law some of our societies today follow this same theme in its extreme. A murderer is in some places, after a trail, placed on death row and executed.
A Masterpiece The code is an organized masterpiece that was generated by a rich nation involved in agriculture and commerce and who where highly sensitive to the rights of its people. The opening laws of the code show their ultimate concern for justice as they lay laws down against insidious judges and false witnesses operating within their courts. This code reveals itself as a humane document ever-conscious of a need to govern its multifaceted bodies and to protect the marginalized of its society. As the earliest collection of laws in the world it sets a high standard of which only the law code of the Israelites, can be argued to be its natural successor.
In Part Two of the Law and Life we shall look at Israelite Law as it attempts to protect the marginalized in its society. We shall investigate to what extent the laws were successful and to whose role it fell to protect the people.
The Era of the Judges (roughly 12th-11th centuries B.C.E.)
When practicing bible study, we learn that Following Joshua’s death, the Israelites were faced with many enemies surrounding them, from within the land of Canaan as well as the surrounding people. There was no one leader who could unify the people and the Book of Judges tell us of political, moral and religious deterioration at this time.
Confronting the various enemies, different figures took the role of leaders upon themselves as a result of the desperate state inflicted on the people, bringing peace and quiet for limited periods of time. They were called judges, a word denoting not only legal judges but also leaders. These judges were members of different tribes of Israel, ruling sequentially, according to the Book of Judges, although many scholars assume their rule was at parallel times and contained to their own tribes or regions. They were first and foremost military figures, such as Gideon, who beat the Midianites with military cleverness, and Samson, whose incredible personal strength defeated the philistines on many occasions.
At the conclusion of this era, the Israelites were involved in interior conflicts that led to inner-wars and bloodshed, due to the lack of leadership, as the book of Judges tells us (Judges 17:6): “In those days, there was no king in Israel. Every man did what was right in his eyes.” These were resolved by uniting Israel under the rule of King Saul, followed by King David.
Hebron (also known as Kiryat Arba or Mamreh) is a city of a rich biblical history going back to the era of the Patriarchs. When Abraham arrived in Canaan, one of the places in which he settled was the Hebron area, which he sanctified by building an altar to YHWH: “And Abraham moved his tent and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre which is in Hebrom and there he built an altar to YHWH” (Genesis 13:18).. Hebron is also where Abraham buried his wife, Sarah, in the cave of Machpela. Both in Jewish and in Muslim tradition Hebron is considered “the city of Abraham,” and both in Hebrew and in Arabic its name is derived from the word “friend,” because Abraham is considered to be the friend of God.
When the Israelites returned from Egypt, Hebron was conquered by Caleb the son of Jephunneh, one of the spies sent to Canaan by Moses and the only one other than Joshua who lived to enter the land. Hebron was conquered from the giants who had formerly inhabited the city, and became a central part of Judean territory.
Hebron was especially important at the beginning of David’s reign, when, for seven years, it served as his capital before Jerusalem: “In Hebron he [David] reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned over all of Israel and Judah thirty three years” (2 Samuel 5:5). Hebron continued to be a central part of Jewish history throughout the First Temple Period, and it is the place of Absalom’s revolt against David, a city fortified by king Rehoboam, and apparently an important cultural and administrative center throughout this period. The city was conquered again by Judah the Maccabi during the Second Temple Period.
The most substantial archeological finding from biblical Hebron are the handles of jars dedicated to king Hezekiah bearing the name of the city, thus showing that it was under Judean rule and that the inhabitants gave taxes and gifts to the king in Jerusalem.
Read the First Comment 
concerned about the abuse by the mighty of the poor in their society. Just as Justice is considered the foundation stones and highest virtues of our modern age, so too was it central to ancient Mesopotamians. It is without a doubt that the major law-code that preceded the birth of the Israelites and doubtless held an influence over them- was the great and detailed law code of King Hammurabi, the sixth King from the first dynasty of Babylon (18th-17th century BCE). This law code that reveals a king keenly interested in the execution of justice amongst his people set the standard by which all following law codes are heavily indebted.
dealings from Animal Rentals to issues of Alimony. The law is written in case form (a pattern continued by Israelite Law) where a situation is described and a verdict given- the example of such a situation provides for additional clarity.
The opening laws of the code show their ultimate concern for justice as they lay laws down against insidious judges and false witnesses operating within their courts. This code reveals itself as a humane document ever-conscious of a need to govern its multifaceted bodies and to protect the marginalized of its society. As the earliest collection of laws in the world it sets a high standard of which only the law code of the Israelites, can be argued to be its natural successor.
